The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-09-07

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Boat--A Walled in Paradise for a
Residence.
Baltimore letter in PHILADELPHIA Times.
The curious visitor to this cty who takes
a Red Line car and rides ut Baltimore
street as far as Fremont will bserve a large
square enclosed by high wal, over the top
of which appears the manard roof of a
palatial residence. On inquiry he will find
that this is the property of N. Ross Winans,
the son of Thomas Winas, and a very
ludicrous story is connectedwith the build
ing of this double-story, eoomy and for
bidding wall around squap of the loveliest
and most artistic garden in the United
States.
Many years ago, when Thomas Winans
constructed this elegant reidence, he took
special pains to surround with handsome
grounds, importing European gardeners for
the work and rare plants fo the aesthetically
constructed beds. Cool md airy Chinese
pagodas, Turkish mosquesand other quaint
forms OF architecture wereIlsed for the sum-
mer houses, while fantastl glass structures.
filled with beautiful tropiol plants of gor-
geous foliage abounded on very hand. Amid
all these fanciful ornaments Mr.. Winans,
who was a lover of art, had casts made
from the most celebrated classic statues,
such as the various Venuses, Psyche,
Clito, Ceres and Others of a graver
Kind, placed in the most commanding posi-
tons. A low iron falce inclosed the
grounds, it being the intention of Mr..
Winans to make his garden an object of
delight to his fellow-citi,ens and to throw it
open to the public on ce'tain days. At that
time there were many people who did not
look upon the nude In art with the same
liberation that all exercise to-day. and a
certain element of the population were ex-
ceedingly Mortified by the innocent
statues. They got up a petition to the
City Council, praying the authorities
to have them removed or forbidden
Of course the Council took no action, but
Mr.. Winans, who was very sensitive, took
otfense at this reception of his liberatity,
and built the towering wall around his ar
tistic grounds. Few have ever been ad-
mltted within the guarded precincts, and
the most marvellous stories are told in the
neighborhood as to its contents. 1t was
here that in his later days Mr. Winans had
his great organ put up-one of the largest
organs in the country-which he occasion
ally hired some professional musician to play
on for his own exclusive amusement.
The WlNANS FAMILY.
The history of the Winans family is as
remarkable as it is interesting. Over forty
years ago there lived in this city two broth
erS named Thomas and William Winans
Both were men of natural railroad genius,
though far from cultivated or scientific en-
gineers. The two had made money and
they began to foresee the future of railroad
building in Russia. About this period the
Gar drew his famous pencil mark across
the map from St, Petersburg to Moscow
as the route of the railroad he pro-
jected. The story is old, but it
bears retelling here. After all the
engineers had given their opinions about
the best practicable routes, Nicholas, con
fused by the clash of ideas, took up ruler
and drawing a straight line by it across the
map from st. Petersburg to Moscow, handed
it to them as the final route of the railroad
The alarmed Russians had recourse to for
eign engineers, and the Winans took I'D the
work. The road was successfully built and
q great fortune secured to them, but it was
not until 1861, that completely successful
locomotive was built. In those days Rus
sian engines burned wood entirely, and it
was only after seventeen years that the
right kind of locomotive was constructed.
From that period on the fortunes of the
Winans family began to be colossal
Thomas married the daughter of Rus
sian shopkeeper She died, leaving him two
children-Ross Winans, of this city, and
Celeste, now married 20 Mr. Hutton, a
young Enslishman in the diplomatic service
William had married an English woman of
the middle class and retired to England to
enjoy his wealth. Since the time he first
crossed the ocean on his way to Russia in
1874, William Winans has never returned
to this country. A strain of eccentricity
early developed itself in both brothers, and
in William it took the form of a nervous
dread of crossing the ocean. Never before
did an American become so thoroughly
weaned from his country. William says
that he would not cross the Atlantic for
100000. Nor is he willing that his sons
Walter and Louis shall.
THOMAS wINANs' MODELS.
Thomas Winans' manner of expanding his
huge revenues was at least unique. He had
but one taste and aptitude, but one occupa-
ton in the world, and that was in building
models of steam vessels after original de-
signs. This propensity caused him to be
called the 'cigar-boat man" and many peo-
pie thought he was touched about the brain
on the subject. He thought he could build
a boat in the shape of cigar that would
distance anything and everything afioat,
and he spent hundreds eff thousands
IN constructing models. He launched
several, and they always turned
bottom upwards as soon as they
touched water, which was exactly what
scientific men predicted Old Thomas was
bluff, rich, determined and untroubled by
scientific Scruples, so he continued his ex-
perlments to the day of his death, despite
criticisms, to which he was very sensitive.
Among the old gentleman's other propensi-
ties was a supreme devotion to Lydia
thompson when she was in the heyday of
her charms, but the wicked Lydia used to
repay this modern species of knight erran-
Try by introducing into her song references
to the wonderful cigar boat, which always
brought down the house, but which always
caused MIR. Winans to quit the theatre in
rage
William, observing how his brother be-
came sport for the scientists, kept his own
experiments as secret as possible, but he
continues as much from force of habit as
IRON any natural taste TO work every day
on the same queer model, although his in
come, according to his own returns, is from
S2,OO0,000 TO $5,000,o00 These gigantic
revenues, which make him next to the
hothschilds and the Duke of Westminster,
the richest man in England, he spends with
Tree hand, but neither he nor his family
Is able to spend it all His residence in
henslngton Garden is extremely handsome.
= noble carriage drive leads up to the door
oi the engineer prince. The hall of en-
france is lofty, and the two vast
urawlng-rooms are superb. charm
ing effect is produced by monster
s s OF plate glass separating the